


First Day of My Life

by Flynn_Voltage_Taggart



Category: Doom (Video Games), Half-Life, Halo (Video Games) & Related Fandoms
Genre: Freeguy117, Gordon's dad is here and fine by the magic of plor armor, It's got fluff and comfort, Multi, it's a wedding fic finally, it's also got them goofing around with each other, they/them pronouns for the Doom Slayer
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-24
Updated: 2021-01-24
Packaged: 2021-03-16 20:00:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,851
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28962081
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Flynn_Voltage_Taggart/pseuds/Flynn_Voltage_Taggart
Summary: "And you said'This is the first day of my lifeI'm glad I didn't die before I met youBut now I don't care, I could go anywhere with youAnd I'd probably be happy'"John tries to prepare both of his partners for a big day.
Relationships: Doom Marine | Doom Slayer | Doomguy/Gordon Freeman/John-117 | Master Chief
Kudos: 10





	First Day of My Life

"Suck it in and suck it up, Slayer."

The words did not feel too strange coming out of John's mouth considering how often his partner's lack of special awareness had nearly gotten their rear end fried by an imp more times than he could count. It was the fact that the phrase wasn't uttered in combat but rather in synching the corset back of a wedding dress that was really bringing the absurdity of this entire arrangement.

Despite all of his efforts to compress the Slayer's ribcage into nonexistence, they still had enough air to lobby a playful retort, "It's not my fault Earth circa 2000 something or the other has such crushing standards of beauty." 

This was one of few occasions John was glad he temporarily removed his helmet. He would have hated if they missed all that effort he put into rolling his eyes at such a silly complaint.

"You were the one who wanted to take Freeman's last name. You should have know there would be unforeseen consequences," he gave another harsh tug on the silk restraints to further underline his point.

"You would be doing the exact same if you hadn't lost the bet."

It was stupid. It really shouldn't be a matter of government interference how many people married at each other, but seeing as they all were having to play nice in this bubble of converged time and space, there would be only one marriage in the household. Seeing it was closest to Gordon's reality, it only seemed fair he would be the one being proposed to. To avoid yet another tussle to break their fifth coffee table, they decided to place a simple bet on a simple game. Allegedly, the Slayer had one, but seeing all the fuss of putting a wedding together, John highly doubted it was much of a prize. That didn't negate the fact he hated losing.

"It's not my fault you cheated."

"For the last time John, you can't cheat at Uno."

"I am certain you were counting cards."

There was a small pause, a small and very shallow breath.

".....Do you- did you not know to play Uno?"

"Of course, I do," John replied with an awful grimace of a smile.

"Mister John 117, savior of humanity, was too proud to look at the instructions for a kid's card game."

He kept himself quiet as he finished the knot that would hopefully keep the dress just so for the ceremony.

"Admit it."

He kept himself silent as he admired his handiwork and the nice expanse of the Slayer's broad shoulder blades it allowed. Jealously was a strong word, but it matched the slight twinge of emotion to all this pomp and circumstance just for Gordon.

He didn't have time to linger on it as the Slayer seemed happy to continue their small bout of gloating, "Admit that mister space admiral..."

"Master Chief, petty officer- higher ranking than you, corporal, if you had forgotten," he amended. 

"Okay, admit it, admit it Master Chief that you lost a luck based kiddie game. No buts or ifs."

"Fine," he huffed in the way he always seemed to when he was clearly loosing an argument before containing, "Still, why are you wearing this if it's such a pain to put on?" 

The question was genuine, but it also avoided the embarrassment of having to truly acknowledge that his hot streak of luck fizzled out because he was too proud to ask what an "Uno reverse" meant. 

"Compromise. Plain and simple. Gordon chose mine. I chose his. No fuss."

John gave an almost incredulous look up and down the dress. It wasn't that it wasn't a gorgeous dress. The floor length, mermaid cut wedding dress with the lace and silk layers covered with dozens of little fake pearls dotting the swooping layers of fabric looked like something out of the fairytales he dully remembered from his early years. Although beautiful, it was a bit....immodest. Sure, his tastes were rather conservative, but the sleeveless top of the dress that hugged their chest seemed a bit forward in terms of garment selection. 

Then again, the Slayer did seem awfully happy in it judged on that huge, mischievous grin on their face and the slight sparkle in those teal-blue eyes. He supposed that was all he could really want for his partner. 

"Gordon....picked this out.....for you?"

"Not exactly, but I'm pretty sure a lot of his blood went into the embroidery."

"I'm no expert on this, but isn't it bad luck for the groom to see the wedding dress before the ceremony."

"It's not exactly like I can put this on with my eyes closed, John."

He almost laughed. Almost. 

"You're telling me Gordon could have helped lace this corset."

"He's got his own preparations to worry about."

"I am sure he is going to deliver rousing speech."

The Slayer's face tried to seem annoyed at the remark, but they couldn't help but chuckle at the remark. John knew that same corny joke never got old. Plus, it was much better without Gordon glaring at him from across the room while telling it.

Wanting to prompt a bit more out of Slayer, perhaps just to soothe his own nerves about the process, he prompted, “Can you at least tell me what he's wearing so I know how much to prepare myself to not fidget with his tie?" 

"Tuxedo t-shirt and his favorite pair of acid wash jeans."

"It's just that I'm a bit more dressed up than that." 

The statement was more than accurate. Formal wear was the perfect socially acceptable excuse to cover yourself from to toe in garments that slightly obscured the body's natural edges. John was taking full advantage of it with his rather traditional tuxedo. 

The Slayer countered, "It's normal to be more casual about this stuff, to value comfort and range of motion."

"Really? I thought that was only a juvenile practice of defiance against formal wear. He went along with it?"

"It'll look cute on him."

John was terrible at hiding his facial expressions, especially after decades of using a helmet to subsidize the work. It did not serve him well in most cases, especially now with a look of disapproval plastered all over his already stern face.

"You know these sort of things have a budget, John," the Slayer added with a non-committal wave of their hand.

"There was nothing within the household bills to indicate that. You know I have actually grown to find them a pretty interesting exercise."

"I hate to burst your bubble, future CPA, but the budget wasn't from us."

"Who would have facilitated something like this?"

The Slayer's smile evaporated into nothing more than a thin crease of his lips. They both knew well enough what the silence entailed, or more accurately who the silence alluded to.

"Why else do you think we set up at the Willard Geer Planetarium?" they offered as a weak attempt at humor.

"Because the Willard Smith Planetarium down the street was booked solid," he replied dryly. 

"Listen, I know you aren't a big fan of G-Man...."

"He put all of us in danger!"

"He brought all of us together. He is keeping us safe for the time being."

"Who knows what his cosmic influence has done. How many people he's hurt....We don't have any comprehension of the threat we are lowering our guards in the presence in."

"Do you really think that old dirt bag is stupid enough to stage something in front of all of Gordon's greatest allies?"

"And what if he's going to hold this over our head's- what if this is some battering chip to get to Gordon again!"

"And if it is, we can deal with it later, John. The point is that this is for Gordon, and G-Man is letting all of this happen, letting him be at his old home with his friends and family. Can you put up with it for a day for Gordon?"

"And for you," John amended.

They seemed content enough with that answer as they started their shuffle towards the door out into the main corridor. 

"One last thing"

Before the Slayer could question him, his hands were gently pressing the lofty veil against the Slayer's shag of an overgrown crew cut. 

And before he could question himself, his forehead was pressed against the Slayer in a mimicked version of indirect helmet kisses. 

He wished he had time to linger, time to admire the eagerness in the Slayer's face on the precipice of such a huge show of public vulnerability in the name of affection. Unfortunately, they only had this hall for three hours, and getting lost in the Slayer's eyes was not part of the schedule.

His palm pressed against the door, but yet again, there was an interruption, this time from the Slayer tapping his shoulder. 

"Hey, it's only fair if you get your veil since I have one," the Mjolnir armor headpiece was clutched in their left hand as they spoke.

"You're letting me wear my helmet?"

"If it'll make you more comfortable."

"You must really not care how these wedding photos are going to look," John's derisive tone lost most of its weight with the soft, little smile forming across the rigid scars of his neural interface.

"If you want, I can let you win Uno for the privilege."

The snarky little jab was lost or muffled by the pleasant dulling of the sense that came with obscuring 25% of his field of vision.

Finally, they could step out of this dusty office being used as a makeshift dressing room.

Finally, the start of their more permanent future together could commence. 

The auditorium’s glow from above of a kaleidoscope of the local night sky obscured most of the guests in attendance. He presumed they were various relation to Gordon who was really the only one of them who had much of a family left who did not need much thorough vetting. It was why John nearly lost his balance when a figure darted out and grabbed onto his arms. 

John's reflexes were quick but luckily so was his processing. Before he butted the intruder away with the back of his glove, he processed that it was a person, a civilian guest most likely. Yes, in fact, it was a rather average person with all things considered, a 6'3 man with a scrawny build and a neatly combed head of red hair showing patches of white for his age that paired well with the rounded wire frame glasses precariously perched on the bridge of his nose.

"Hi, Mr. Freeman!" the Slayer cheerily chimed in from the dark expanse at his side.

Well, that would explain it. Gordon definitely took after his dad. He supposed that gave him something to look forward to. 

"This is John, right?" elder Freeman asked directly to the Slayer instead of him.

"Yes, sir. Told you he'd be easy enough to spot."

When had the Slayer gotten to meet Gordon's dad?

Since when had Gordon's dad been around at all?

He would just have to wait until after the ceremony to get his answers.

"Pleasure to meet you, sir. I am John. I am sure Slayer has told you all about me," he shot a withering look into the void of space beside him before continuing, "I must say that your son is absolutely wonderful, Mr. Freeman."

"Absolutely wonderful man and missing. It's like the King County Science Fair all over again. Funny store. I'll tell you at the reception. He seems to be running late, and being a friend of the groom..."

"Partner of the grooms," John corrected.

"Yes, yes, you know both of them well. Any way....I was hoping you could retrieve him. I just hate for his old habits to mean I can't see my son off at his own wedding. It's one of the few things a dad gets to look forward to, you know."

Concurrent murmurings about Gordon always being late echoed through the vast planetarium.

But John knew Gordon better than that. John knew Gordon wasn't ever late from laziness or negligence. John knew Gordon was often late because he got caught up in preparing himself for things he thought were truly important, and that meant he had a very good chance of finding him. 

I'll take care of it, Mr. Freeman was about all he got out before he darted back into the corridor.

John did not really need to guess at where Gordon would be taking refuge from the pressure of such a momentous event.

Fourth stall down to the left in the restroom. Gordon had once explained something about it being the least suspect and subject to scrutiny and a pleasant distance away from the sinks. It was an admittedly odd preference, but he thanked his lucky stars that Gordon was so methodical about these things now.

3 quick raps on the stall door.

"Freeman, you need to come out."

No answer aside from the slight squeak of sneakers against linoleum.

"Freeman, I already saw your feet under there. I know you're hiding."

Silence. 

"Freeman, there are people out there waiting on you."

Another slight shuffle of fabric against plastic, probably pushing himself as far away from the stall door as possible.

"It's just me...John...you don't have to be afraid. I am not going to hurt you."

Silence.

"Freeman, please....at least open the door."

There was shuffling and then the slight click of a latch.

The door swung open inwards.

The Slayer was right. The outfit really did look cute on him. 

What wasn't as endearing was how red and puffy his eyes looked under his glasses.

"What did you get into, Freeman?"

Gordon moved to close the door again

John quickly amended, "I am right here. You can tell me what's wrong. We're a team, remember? My problems are your problems."

Gordon shook out his hands to try to steady them, "I keep thinking I am going to say or do the wrong thing, and that you and Slayer will start fighting over it and our household will far apart and the mission will got to shambles and....and..."

"Well, technically, doc, it'd be a real miracle for you to say the wrong thing." 

Although well-deserved, the light punch to his shoulder at that remark was still a bit of a surprise.

"I'll remind you this is a rental, and the next seven foot tall monster of a man would be very disappointed if he found superficial damage in the one suit in the galaxy that fits them."

Gordon made something of a raspy wheeze at that. 

It was the prettiest sound in the world to him.

Seeing his face light up for the brief moment, John wanted to chase that look on Gordon's face, to ease all that worry that showed in his eyes and the flecks of white already in his hair.

"Listen, doc. There's a lot of things that are easy for me to turn into competitions. Kills out on a mission. Dishes. Efficiency at the grocery store. How you feel about me isn't one of them. You know, being paired up with Cortana helped me realize something that really came in handy when I met you. People- normal people- there isn't an end goal, not a ceremony like this or an anniversary or a set amount of hours together. The way they feel about each other....it's like the planetarium projection that we are going out under- it's vast and complicated and constantly changing and shifting bit by bit."

"Did you get that sappy analogy from Reader's Digest?"

"Depends. Did it work?"

Gordon replied with a vague shake of his hand, a universal gesture for an uninvested so-so.

"Would it help if I promised to not get into any fights with Slayer....unless of course they cheat at a board game again. I have to maintain some pride."

There was another soft wheeze and a shake of the head from Gordon. It was a relatively good sign.

"I could give you a kiss, but with my helmet on, I think it might be more of a concussion than a bribe."

Gordon's head just barely bumped the front of his visor.

"I don't think I can take bribes let you spend your wedding in a communal restroom."

Gordon let out a silent exhale before quickly correcting him, "I'll be right there."

"Promise?" it was a word John had grown fond of now that he had people he could trust enough to keep the.

"Promise."

A few moments later, John was sprinting down the aisle to be in position for Gordon's arrival.

The Slayer nodded in acknowledgement when John reclaimed his spot by their side before whispering a question, "You're tearing up under the helmet, aren't you?"

"Just a little bit."

It was one weakness he was more than happy to admit as he saw the two people he cherished about to have one of the happiest moments of their lives.

**Author's Note:**

> This idea has been floating around since October, and it finally came to fruition. 
> 
> Thank you for reading! Your feedback and comments are always appreciated.


End file.
